Washing machine



Filed Aug. 25, 1959 Pigl' J5 Dec. 2, 1941.

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Patented Dec. 2, 19 41 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE WASHING MACHINE George W. Dunham, Westport, Com, assignor to General Electric Compamv, a corporation of New York Application August 25, 1939, Serial No. 291,926

4 Claims.

The present invention relates to washing machines of the type in which, clothes are washed and centrifugally dried in a single receptacle.

tional elevation; of a washing machine embody-' ing my invention, the parts being in position for centrifugal drying; Fig. 2 is a sectional elevation of the upper .end of the washing machine, the parts being in position for washing; Fig. 3 is a sectional view of the upperend of the agitator and of the receptacle hub; Fig. 4 is a sec- The weight of the receptacle is transmitted to the shaft |2 through the disks2| to 24 inclusive to the flange 20, and from the flange to a shoulder on the shaft. The disk 23, which is arranged between the friction disks 2| and 22, is provided with a projection 26 which cooperates with a stop 21 secured to the inner surface of the receptacle hub Due to the weight of the receptacle the disks 2| to 24 inclusive are pressed together and held against'the flange 20. The friction therebetween normally holds the disks in fixed relation. As is apparent from Fig. 4, the shaft 2 and the sleeve I8 splined thereto may have an angular movement of somewhat less than 360 degrees without bringing the projection 26 into contact with the stop 21. During this angular movement of the. shaft the retional view taken on line 4 -4 of Fig. 3; and Fig; i

5 is a fragmentary view of the upper end of the casing.

Referring to the drawing, there is shown a washing machine having a casing consisting of ceptacle 9 remains substantially stationary. When the shaft rotates continuously in one direction the projection 26 engages thestop 21 and' the sleeve and the,disks 2| to 24 inclusive are Above the water level in the casing and flxed to the inner surface thereof is an annular trough' '8 arranged to catch liquid. centrifugally dis-- charged from the clothes during drying. The liquid caught in the trough may, in accordance with the practice of the art, be returned to the casing or directed to a drain in a manner not 'tegral with the bottom walls of the receptacle is an extending hub surrounding a vertical shaft l2. .The lower end of the receptacle hub is guided on the shaft by a sleeve bearing l3 fixed to a ring ll secured-to the inner surface of the hub. In the upper end of the hub isa combined sleeve and thrust bearing 15 which is held therein by a washer l6 fixedin a spun-over portion ll of the hub. The bearing IS- is rotatable on a sleeve l8 splined on the up per end IQ of the shaft l2. At the lower end of the sleeve I8 is an outwardly extending flange 20 .above which are arranged disks 2| and 22 of over the upper end of the agitator from leaking accordingly held iii assembled relation in the receptacle hub. I

The splined end .|9 of the shaft 2 projects above the receptacle hub into a nut 29 fixed in the upper end 30 of an agitator. The agitator has a tubular body 3| extending downwardly in a. bottom disk 32 adjacent t 8 bottom wall of the receptacle. Integral with the body of the agitator are vanes 33. The lower end of the agitator isguided onthe-receptaclehub H by' a bearing 34 fixed to the inner surface of the agitator. The agitator is supported by a thrust washer 35 arranged between thelower surface of the nut 29 and the upper edge of the sleeve l8. A cap 36'snapped over the upper end of the agitator keeps water, which may be splashed around the shaft l2.

From the above'descri bed construction it is apparent that upon oscillation of the shaft I2 friction material and metal disks 23 and 26.

the agitator will be oscillated relative to the receptacle and that upon rotation of the shaft l2 the receptacle will be rotated. This construction is being claimed in application Serial. No. 339,972, filed June 11, 1940, now patent No.

an angle of approximately 200 degrees at a rate of 60 complete oscillations a minute or rotated at a high speed by suitable driving mechanism contained within a casing 31 supported on the skirt 3 below the bottom wall I of the casing. This driving mechanism may, for example, be that shown in my Patent 2,161,618. The casing 31 has a tubular portion 38 extending through an opening 39 in the bottom wall of the casing and connected to a sleeve 40 surrounding the shaft I2. The bottom wall of the casing is clamped between a flange 4| and a ring 42, providing a liquid-tight joint. The upper end of the sleeve 40 extends above the normal water level in the casing and, at its upper end, is provided with a self-aligning bearing 43 in which the shaft I2 is journaled.

Slidably mounted in the casing is a tub 44 having side walls 45 telescoped within the trough 8. At the upper edge of the side walls 45 is an enlarged rim 46 connected to the side walls by a shoulder 47 which rests on the upper edge of the trough when the tub 44 is in the lowered position shown in Fig. 1. The bottom wall 48 of the tub is provided with an enlarged opening 49 surrounding the sleeve 40. Around the opening 49 and on the upper surface thereof is fixed a rubber ring 50 which is adapted .to engage the outer edges of a disk when the tub is in the raised position shown in Fig. 2. The disk 5| is integral with a sleeve 52' fixed to the sleeve 40. Suitable stiffening ribs 53 are arranged between the disk 5| and the sleeve 52. The opening 49 and disk 5| constitute a valve closure for the bottom of the tub 44.

The tub 44 is raised and lowered by a ring 54 vertically slidable on the outside of the casing. The ring 54 has attached thereto four flexible cables 55 which extend from the ring up over the rim 5 of the casing, down through openings 56 in the rim, andover pulleys 51 and 58 to lugs 59 attached to the rim 46 of the tub. Upon pushing the ring 54 downward from the position shown in Fig. 1 it is obvious that thetub 44 will be raised. The tub is held in the raised position by spring pressed catches 60 carried by a band 60a fixed to the outside of the casing and arranged to engage the ring 54 and hold it in the position shown in Fig. 2.

When the tub 44 is in the position shown in Fig. 2 the rubber ring 50 engages the disk 5| and seals the opening in the bottom wall of the tub. The perforate receptacle 9 is therefore surrounded by the tub. The upper edge of the tub is slightly 'below the rim In of the receptacle so that the water level in the' receptacle is kept below its upper edge.

To start the washing the tub 44 is moved'to the raised position and is then filled with water.. This also fills the receptacle, since the walls of the receptacle are perforated. The agitator is then oscillated by the driving mechanism in the casing 31, the receptacle remaining substantially stationary, as descri d above. The clothes are preferably loaded in the receptacle while the agitator is oscillating. During washing it is advantageous to continuously withd1 aw liquid from the receptacle and allow it to fall into the lower part of the casing. This allows the scumwhich accumulates on top the washing solutionto settle in the bottom of the casing. This is accomplithed by a pump 5| connected by a conduit 62 to the bottom of the casing and having a discharge conduit 63 extending up through the bottom wall of the casing and through the trough ll, terminating in a goose neck 64 discharging to the receptacle. During washing the pump BI is operated continuously, pumping liquid from the bottom of the casing to the receptacle. This liquid overflows over the upper edge of the tub 44 and returns to the casing. The overflowing liquid carries with it most of the scum and lint, and a considerable portion of this matter remains in the bottom of the casing. The heavier particles settle through the perforated bottom walls of the receptacle and collect in the bottom of the tub 44., From one aspect the tub 44 constitutes an upper washing compartment and the space in the casing therebelow constitutes a storage compartment.

At the conclusion of the washing operation the oscillation of the agitator is stopped and the tub 44 is lowered by releasing the catches 60 and permitting the ring 54 to move upwardly. This lowers the tub 44 to the position shown in Fig. 2 in which it is supported slightly above the bottom of the casing on the trough 8. The movement of the rubber. ring 50 away from the disk 5| permits liquid to flow out of the receptacle. The receptacle therefore starts to drain as soon as the tub 44 is moved slightly below its upper position. The tub 44 need not be completely lowered to drain the receptacle and place the machine in condition for extracting. By the time the tub 44 reaches its lowered position the receptacle is substantially drained. This is advantageous since the drainage of the water from the receptacle carries with it most of the remaining particles of lint and other solid particles. The particles remaining are evenly distributed throughout the clothes. When the tub 44 reaches the lowered position the clothes may be centrifugally dried by high speed rotation of the shaft l2. During the drying operation the clothes may be rinsed by the introduction of fresh water. This water will be centrifugally discharged from the receptacle and will be caught in the trough 8, from which it may be directed to a drain.

After centrifugal drying the clothes are removed from the receptacle. The machine is placed in condition for washing, another load of clothes by raising the tub 44 to the position of Fig. 1 and filling the receptacle by pumping liquid from the bottom of the casing into the receptacle; The tub 44 may be easily raised due to the large opening 49 in its bottom wall. This makes it unnecessary for the operator to lift the entire weight of the liquid within the tub 44.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by LettersPatent of the United States, is:

1. In a washing machine, a perforate receptacle for receiving clothes to be washed, means for effecting washing in the receptacle and for rotating the receptacle to centrifugally extract liquid from the material therein, an outer casing for receiving the liquid contents of the receptacle and having sufficient space for storing the same below the receptacle during extracting, a tub within the outer casing having a bottom wall provided with a drain opening, said tub being movable between a raised position surrounding the receptacle and a lowered position below the receptacle, valve means for closing said drain opening in the raised position of the tub whereby the tub is effective to hold liquid therein and for opening said drain opening upon movement of the tub to the lowered position, said tub in its' raised position overflowing to the casing and de- 2. In a washing machine, a perforate receptacle for receiving clothes to be washed, means for effecting washing in the receptacle and for rotating the receptacle to centrifugally extract liquid from the material therein, .an outer casing for receivingthe liquid contents of the recepand a lowered position below the receptacle, and

provisions for supporting the tub on said trough in the lowered position.

3. In a washing machine, a perforate receptacle for receiving clothes to be washed, means for effecting washing in the receptacle, means including a shaft extending upward from below the receptacle for rotating the receptacle to centrifugally extract liquid from the material therein, an outer casing for receiving the liquid contents of the receptacle and having sufiicient space for storing the same below the receptacle, a tub within the casing having a bottom wall provided with an opening through which said shaft extends and side walls extending upward from the bottom wall, said tub being movable between a raised position surrounding the receptacle and a lowered position below the receptacle, means forsealing the opening in the bottom wall of the tub wherebyit is effective to.hold liquid in,

the raised position, said tub in its raised position overflowing to the casing and defining the liquid level in the receptacle, and means for pumping liquid from the casing to the receptacle during washing.

4. In a washing machine, a perforate receptacle for receiving clothes to be washed, means for effecting washing in the receptacle, means including a shaft extending upward from below the receptacle forrotating the receptacle to centrifugally extract liquid from the material therein, an outer casing for receiving the liquid contents of .the receptacle and having sufficient space for storing the same below the receptacle, a tub within the casing,,having a..bottom .wall provided with an opening through which said shaft extends and side walls extending upward from the bottom wall, a disc surrounding the shaft, said tub being movable between a raised position in which the side walls of the tub surround the receptacle and the bottom walls engage said disc and seal said opening and a lowered position inwhich the bottom walls are moved away from said disc permitting liquid to flow out through said opening.

GEORGE W. DUNHAM. 

